where X: is your mounted image or physical DVD and Y: is your USB device

Step 3: Begin installation

Based on the media you have chosen in the previous step, either plug the USB in the USB slot or insert disc into the DVD drive and boot your computer

Configure your regional settings by setting your Language, Time and currency format and Keyboard or Input method. Press Next to proceed.

If you want to install a fresh copy, do not click on Repair your computer, select Install Now option to proceed with normal installation.

The next screen brings three options in front of you namely :

Choose one of the installations and click on Next to proceed. One thing to be noted is that Windows 8 Server is fully based on x64 architecture and hence x86 is not supported.

Windows Server Developer Preview (Full Installation)

Windows Server Developer Preview (Server Core Installation)

Windows Server Developer Preview (Features On Demand)

Figure 5: License Agreement

Please ensure that you read the license terms before proceeding with installation further. Click on I accept the license terms option and Next to proceed.

Figure 6: Type of install

There are two options presented to you at this stage- upgrade and custom installation. If you want to retain files and folders on your primary partition, select upgrade option. If you are installing a fresh copy of Windows 8 Server, choose custom option.

Figure 7: Select partition

The next screen displays the various partitions present on your system. You can change the partitions by selecting Drive options at the bottom right from where you will be allowed to create and delete partitions. Remember, deleting a partition will erase all data on that partition and this operation cannot be undone. So, determine the partition where you would like to install Windows 8 Server and click on Next to proceed. It is a general practice to install operating systems on C: drive.

Figure 8: Installing Windows

This screen is similar to Windows 7 installation where the setup files are copied and then expanded to proceed with installation.

Figure 9: First Reboot

The system will restart itself in 10 seconds once the installation process is complete. You can trigger a manual restart at this point by clicking on Restart Now.

The Window Server Setup modifies registry files, gets the devices ready and prepares the user interface for loading after which it redirects you to the Logon screen.

Figure 10: Create user

Create an administrator account at this point with a username and password.

Ensure that the created password obliges to the password policy having 8 characters and a combination of lowercase and uppercase letters along with other characters.

Figure 11: Logon screen

The lock screen will be displayed where you press CTRL+ALT+DELETE to log on.

Figure 12: Enter password

Now the real logon screen is displayed where you enter the password that was created two steps ago.

Figure 13: Server Manager

The server manager launches itself to configure your Windows 8 Server and include the list of devices that will be connected or managed by this computer.

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Comments

Linux User

I think there still need for improvement but overall the UI is pretty friendly. If this is a server OS, why don’t we drop the UI and leave the power-shell to do its magic, that makes more sense for me. Or at least it would make sense for most of us that manage a data-center. Thank you for posting the developer preview install screenshots.